MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Signal left, but turn right.

Latinamerica's presidential elite, with the exception of Cuban leader Fidel Castro, plus representatives from over a hundred countries will be present Tuesday at the inauguration ceremony of Uruguayan president Tabare Vazquez. An event that could be interpreted as a sensitive diplomatic and political realignment in the region.

Almost two thousand security forces will be overlooking the full day's ceremony that will end with street celebrations and political rallies in the country's capital Montevideo including a display of fireworks and bonfires in the city's periphery.

Among the distinguished visitors are Brazil's Lula da Silva; Argentina's Nestor Kirchner; Chile's Raul Lagos; Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, Prince Felipe from Spain; Britain's Prince Edward; Labour Secretary Elaine Chao will represent US President George Bush. Mr. Castro announced late Sunday he would not be coming following medical orders given the fragility of the knee injury he suffered a few months ago.

The Cuban leader was the most expected visitor by the more militant members of the left wing coalition that helped Mr. Vazquez win elections. Mr. Castro is revered as an idol for much of the Uruguayan intellectuals, hardline trade unions and university students for his strong unbending stand against the United States, Darwinian capitalism and Marxist socialist preaching.

Besides the first international decision of the incoming Vazquez administration will be to re establish diplomatic relations with Cuba that were severed in 2002 by outgoing president Jorge Batlle following Mr. Castro's insults when Uruguay co sponsored, in the framework of United Nations, sending a human rights observer to Cuba.

However it's expected Venezuela's Chavez and his Bolivarian revolution myth will make up if the main star is missing.

Venezuela and Uruguay are also expected to sign a trade agreement involving the exchange of oil for food and software. And it's this left leaning rhetoric and friendliness which is believed could begin to cause concerns in Washington.

The new Uruguayan government Foreign Affairs Minister Socialist Reynaldo Gargano is an outspoken critic of US "imperialism" and capitalism, a declared admirer of the Cuban and Venezuelan regimes who believes in Socialism as the true salvation for mankind and in Mercosur solidarity to confront other blocks.

Lip service aside actually Argentina, Brazil and Chile, for different reasons, are closer to United States and the Bush administration than to the Cuban and Venezuelan regimes.

However outgoing president Jorge Batlle was a close friend of President Bush and having suffered the financial 2002/03 crisis which shocked and almost left the Uruguayan economy KO, was not so enthusiastic about a dominating dependence of Mercosur and favoured open markets, lower tariffs and more strategic trade relations, (European Union, Nafta, China, India) in line with what has been Chile's approach.

According to diplomatic sources in Montevideo Mr. Gargano will only be staying in the post for a year, when he will be named Ambassador in Spain where most of his family lives.

But until then the incoming hard line Foreign Affairs minister might have to overcome several irritating situations if as all indicates, the predominant voice in the cabinet will be Economy Minister Danilo Astori and his most orthodox management of the Uruguayan economy, a follow up of what was set on course by the outgoing "conservative" government under the close monitoring of the IMF.